Stora Enso Oyj

Second-quarter sales were stable at EUR 2.4 billion. Adjusted EBIT increased 27% to EUR 160 million. Management said profitability improved thanks to disciplined own actions, progress in Oulu and cost management, while foreign exchange and lower prices remained headwinds. On cash and balance sheet, lower CapEx supported cash flow after investing activities, net debt decreased clearly after the EUR 1 billion hybrid issuance, and net debt to adjusted EBITDA improved to around 2.2x. Forward-looking, management expects full capacity on the new consumer board line in Oulu during next year, and the strategic review of Central European sawmills is due to be concluded by the end of this year.

Hans Sohlstrom framed the quarter as another example of disciplined execution in a volatile market, emphasizing that Stora Enso is improving performance through actions it can control rather than waiting for the market to help. He highlighted customer value creation, operational excellence, and portfolio optimization as the core of the strategy, and repeatedly pointed to Oulu, Consumer Packaging, and value-creation initiatives as evidence that the plan is working. His tone was confident and determined, but he acknowledged that Oulu still hurts near-term profitability and that market conditions remain challenging.

Niclas Rosenlew focused on the bridge between market headwinds and controllable actions. He said sales were stable at EUR 2.4 billion, adjusted EBIT was up 27% to EUR 160 million, and cash flow after investing activities benefited from lower CapEx as the company reduces spending after a period of heavy investment. He also noted working-capital pressure from higher receivables and lower payables, net debt improvement after the EUR 1 billion hybrid issuance, and leverage at around 2.2x net debt to adjusted EBITDA. On segment detail, he cited Consumer Packaging adjusted EBIT up EUR 42 million, Biomaterials up EUR 23 million, and Other as the weak spot due to Sweden wood-price pressure and higher sawlog costs in Central Europe.

Analysts focused on Oulu’s ramp-up timing and earnings drag, the weak performance in Central European sawmills and the Other division, and whether consumer board and containerboard demand could offset those issues. Management said Oulu should reach full capacity during next year, would not quantify mill-level EBIT or EBITDA, and confirmed that consumer board EBIT margin improved from about 2.3% last year to 6.5% in Q2 this year. On sawmills, management said Central European sawlog costs were about 7% higher year over year, the business is profitable but below ambition, and the strategic review will conclude by year-end while leadership changes and stronger self-help actions are already underway. They also pushed back on concerns about Asian imports in consumer board, saying they have not lost business to Chinese producers in Europe.